The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1887-04-15
The RarQa.
Keeping Apples for Winter Use or
Sale IN Maryland.

sale IN maryland.
communicated.
| have now been partly over the
ground in touching upon few points
involved to make fruit culture "A sue
cess. One acre devoted to this bust.
aess may be enlarged ten fold, without
adding any material expense to the cost
of manurlng the farm for ten months
in the year, and in fact it may lessen
the expense, if by Withdrawing this
much land from grain crops we grow
better ones on the remaining fields, and
those most distant from rnnning water
and unsuited for cattle on this account
may often be selected.
Now for few observations on keep
ing apples into and during winter if we
do increase our product.
The one essential requisite to keep
apples, or any fruit in fact, is to pre-
serve it at a uniform temperature, belooO
the point most favorable to decomposi-
ton. This is done now on very large
scale, in storing tropical fruits, and
some of our own raising, in especially
constructed houses that involve the use
of ice.
But can we keep apples without it?
Much can be done in this direction by
using all the natural resources at com.
mand, with skill and judgement Spring
water can he used to good purpose to
keep a cellar cool and the air pure and
where there are copious streams issuing
from our hill sides that can be conveyed
into worms short distance from them,
and on lower level, this water in
shallow troughs and constantly running
back and forth, so as to expose as much
Of the air as possible to it, will reduce
the temperature nearly to its own level,
| If proper protection is also given to
avoid the heat of the midday sun and
all ingress of hot air.
After the first killing frosts of early
winter we have frequently Two or thee
weeks of what we call "lndian Summer"
and it is this that now works great de.
struction to the kinds of fruit most de
pended upon, or that have been planted
for winter use. If we allow these to
stay In the orchard where they grow,
until this season is over, they become
too ripe and large part Of them are sent
to the ground by the fall winds If
picked into barrels and left out they rot,
and if put into warm and close house
cellars they only decompose the faster.
In small heaps in the open air, protect.
ed from the suns direct rays they will
keep better and this is The way they do
in New York and New England The
farmers of N. Y. gather the fruit and
put it in piles about the butt of the
tree on which it grew, where 1t often
remains until the buyers come along to
examine them and bargain for the crop
and this is as much business there as
dealing in hay here. The fruit is thel
assorted or packed, to suit the buyer,
In new barrels, marked with the name
of the variety and any other brand or
stencil they think proper and thus
packed they are stored in warehouses
made for the purpose where they are
held, until sent by boat or ran to mar
ket.
But with US these same apples ripen
too early, and the warm nights continue
too long for this simple treatment to
answer the same purpose, and we must
resort to different methods, as suggest
ed, or get an entirely new list Of varie-
ties to tide us over the "Indian Sum.
mer" The n. York dealers will not
buy many apples until cool weather
and an unusually warm fall causes much
loss there.
For one l have faith in the cool
storage plan, even with our latest va
rieties, for the simple reason that the
same storage room that protects from
autumn's sun, will also be the best and
cheapest remedy for the frosts of win.
ter. We have many north hillsides
where capacious cellars can be made
without much expensive masonry, the
nature Of the earth being such that it
onl needs to be protected from frost to
stand for an indefinite period aud
olHipie coat VI Hyuldullc cement on III Is |
better than wall of stone.
| am speaking now for the many 10
calities where digging can be done ca
silly and cheaply without encountering
large stone. What we call "rotten
rock" or our red clay will hold cement
perfectly when protected from outside
injury by frost or heavy conclusions
and if the roof of cellar is not firm
enough to stand alone with this arch
OF cement to assist, this part can be
arched with stone or brick .abutted
against the side walls of earth and tn re
need be no fear of its filling if protect
ed from frost by simply keeping it SHIT
in winter. /